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Baker, a union critic, accepts first labor endorsement

E-mail|Link|Comments () October 12, 2010 12:40 PM

By Michael Levenson, Globe Staff

Charles D. Baker, the Republican candidate for governor, who has criticized unions as special interests that block reforms and waste taxpayer money, has quietly accepted his first union endorsement.

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Baker on Saturday accepted the endorsement of the State Police Association of Massachusetts. The union, which represents about 1,400 troopers and has been without a contract for 23 months, said Baker “would honor his word and abide by both the letter and the spirit of any contracts between SPAM and the Commonwealth.”

“At this point, SPAM does not believe the Patrick administration has been negotiating in good faith," union president Rick Brown said in a statement.

The union has criticized Governor Deval Patrick for not authorizing a new class of state troopers during the economic downturn and for changing state rules to allow civilian flaggers rather than uniformed troopers to direct traffic at some construction sites.

Baker has criticized the move to flaggers, arguing that they do not save enough money, and has said he supports funding for a new class of state troopers. Baker has also blasted Patrick, a Democrat, and Timothy P. Cahill, the independent candidate, for accepting union endorsements, arguing the endorsements make them beholden to special interests, not taxpayers.

Today, for example, Baker pointed to a dispute between a teachers' union and library volunteers in Bridgewater to argue that "unions and special interests have too much power across the state and on Beacon Hill."

Baker did not hold any media event or release any statement upon receiving the backing of the State Police Association, which has a history of supporting Republicans for governor. The union endorsed Kerry Healey over Patrick in 2006, and Mitt Romney over Shannon P. O’Brien in 2002.

Asked today for a comment on SPAM's endorsement, Baker's spokeswoman, Amy Goodrich, released a statement that said: "While we have disagreements over many issues -- pension reform and the future of the Quinn Bill being the most notable -- we do agree that state troopers need the tools to remove illegal immigrants from the streets and that Governor Patrick’s policies have failed over the past four years and directly led to fewer police on the streets."